We are very happy to announce that Arte Suave Lydenburg has opened under coach Isak Lombard.
Sakkie has been with House of Tinkerbell for and number of years and Arte Suave for the past two years and not only has he progressed in his ability to coach but he has become an incredible Jiu-juitsero and formidable blue belt.
With the support of HOT Head coach JP Kruger and Arte Suave Head coach Huntley Smith, “Sakkie” will be providing MMA and BJJ for kids and adults.
We are very proud to have him as a coach and we wish him all the best.
Many years ago three guys from springs found and promptly became obsessed with Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.
They traveled far and wide (to Johannesburg) every week to train and feed their ever growing obsession.
Many years later, Kyle Hedrikz, Joh-Paul Meeser and I are fortunate enough to be called the founding members of Arte Suave Brazilian jiu Jitsu.
Approximately one year before we opened the first club in Springs, Kyle wrote on my white board “Arte Suave – Are you thinking” basically making him the OG of Arte Suave.
For many months I left this on my board as a reminder of what the dream was – to open a club and share the beauty and art of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.
When the opportunity came to finally open our club the name Arte Suave was the obvious choice as was the coaching team.
Unfortunately, life sometimes gets in the way of Jiu Jitsu, and Kyle was offered the opportunity to relocate to George with his amazing wife Mikaila, he also started a family with the birth of their daughter Gracie.
This was a terrible loss for the club as Kyle (in addition to being a monster OTM) is one of the most technical purple belts we have ever had the pleasure of sharing the mats with.
His coaching ability and mat maturity has always been way above his actual belt level and many times I found myself in awe of just how well he could articulate and breakdown techniques when coaching.
Just over a year later and we have come full circle… we are ecstatic to announce that Arte Suave George is officially born headed by the bearded wonder himself.
Why Arte Suave Brazilian Jiu Jitsu adopted the hashtag #keepitgrounded.
This inconspicuous hashtag is so meaningful in so many ways. The obvious connotation to #keepitgrounded is the physical connection between BJJ which is primarily a ground based martial art form. However, on a more meaningful level the hashtag represents the constant fight that we as humans and BJJ practitioners have with our ego (with the goal of keeping it grounded).
As a white belt the first lesson you learn is that size and strength count for nothing and that in order to grow you need to put your ego aside. Any high level BJJ practitioner can attest to the fact that ego can be the single biggest factor in your progression (or lack thereof). Because at the white belt level it is invariable that you will be the nail and regardless of what you think your ego won’t like it.
As you grow in your game and reach higher belt levels (read more time on the mat) your ego is slowly transformed into confidence. Confidence in your technique, timing, game and general ability to defend yourself and this in turn leads to a level of maturity that by its extension has less ego involvement. In our academy we are of the opinion that despite the fact that you may now be considered the hammer, you don’t always need to be.
White belt retention can only be done through all coaches and students putting aside their ego’s and genuinely wanting to assist the white belts. Once that white belt gains sufficient knowledge and experience and becomes comfortable being uncomfortable you can then start adding more pressure and giving them more game. But it takes maturity and putting aside your ego both as a coach and as a student to do this.
Then comes the ultimate conundrum at some point during your BJJ career (high level purple, brown or black belt) you are the considered to be a serious BJJ practitioner that can handle themselves against just about any lower belt or non BJJ practitioner. Yet, at the same time when you roll your coach or higher belts you are very quickly put back into your place.
This duality is the beauty of BJJ.
To simultaneously be the hammer and the nail and to be happy regardless of which you are on any given day.
